a handful of trouble
by Masafumi-chan
Summary: When the Shinsengumi is called to guard an important government official's house and 14 year old daughter, trouble ensues. The fact that Hijikata despises her the moment they speak to each other doesn't help, nor does the fact that Okita forms an alliance with her to prank Hijikata. The only possible outcome of this is trouble!


"Kondo Isao, is it?" Her father extended his hand out. The other man shook it firmly.

"Yes sir. Kondo Isao at your service."

"Ahaha, no need to be so formal. I'm only having you guard this house of mine and my daughter." The middle age man laughed nonchalantly.

"Well I can protect myself just fine without them." The said girl remarked pridefully, frowning at the lot. You could hear at least one of them grumbling displeasedly.

"Ha. You know this old man likes to pick fights with too many of the Amanto and other people." Her father then ruffled her hair playfully, muttering, with the girl protesting.

"Would you mind if I asked you a question?" The man, Kondo, cleared his throat.

"Sure, Kondo-kun."

"Why don't you have any guards here?"

"Ah, right. Well I do have guards, but I usually give them holidays so they can visit their families or just enjoy life in general. I coincidentally have an urgent errand to run right now, and I need somebody to guard my house. Is there anything else you'd like to know?"

"Oh, no sir."

"Well, I'll have to go now then. See ya later kiddo."

"Okay. Don't come back dead." She waved nonchalantly at her father, as he exited the door laughing. An awkward silence followed after the door shut, with the girl staring at the plentiful Shinsengumi officers.

"Ah, what a hassle. I don't even need this much to guard me." She was preparing to stand up and leave the room.

"W-Wait! Akira-saaaaan!" Kondo abruptly yells out much to the girl's (and everyone else's) surprise.

"_Akira-san_?" She repeats in an interested manner, emphasizing on the suffix.

"W-Well, you're the daughter of Kurosawa Satoshi-san, s-so I thought I should give you some respect when I call you..." He scratches his head embarassedly.

"Kondo-san?" The man sitting on his right, Hijikata Toshirou, gaped at his own commander. Ever since the 'Itou incident', he had never seen his commander referring to somebody else so highly.

"Mm... Well, thanks for the respect, Gorilla Commander-kun. Well, as a token of gratitude I guess I'll let you do whatever you want then." She stands up and dusts the front of her kimono.

"Oi, you brat! Don't just do what you like and call our commander a gorilla!" The demonic Vice Commander rose up from where he sat, and glared at Akira intensely.

"Toshi, sit down." Kondo remarks plainly, as if nothing was wrong. Hijikata stares at his superior for a moment, before complying and sitting down.

"Thank you very much for your help, Commander-kun. However, please do look over your own subordinates. For now I'll go back to my room. I look forward to our next meeting." She walks away and slides open the door, much to the Shinsengumi's bewilderment. Before she closed the door, however, she turns back and delivers a final message.

"By the way, there are many traps around the mansion. My father hadn't notified me beforehand that we would have visitors, so please try to avoid them today while I go around deactivating them." And as Akira leaves the place, she once again baffles the police officers.

* * *

><p>"Commander! Why did you let her go when she insulted you?!"<p>

"Who does she think she is, acting so highly and looking down on us!"

"She's such a spoiled brat!" A commotion began between the Shinsengumi when Akira walked out of the room.

"Alright everyone, listen up! Kurosawa-san told me abruptly so I didn't have time to explain to you all yet." The ruckus died down and all the officers waited impatiently for the explanation.

"Well, it's a surprise to me that you guys don't know Kurosawa Satoshi-san, but he's a high ranking government official who's known for his rebellious attitude. As a result, he has angered many Amanto and other government officials he deem as corrupt and not fit for their position. For example, he is known for indirectly insulting those Inuisei Amanto who look down on humans. They even sent a few of their soldiers here but he defeated them all. He definitely enraged the Inuisei Amanto that time." Kondo paused to laugh for a moment, with his comrades listening carefully intently.

"Kurosawa-san definitely has a lot of enemies, but he is treated with respect by those under him including the guards of his mansion. He does not care about honorifics or anything of those sort, and as you can see he is a very carefree person. He really is an honorable person." Kondo paused to nod to himself, and the atmosphere around him was still quiet, prompting him to continue.

"His wife died around the time she gave birth to Akira-san, so he's been singlehandedly raising her by himself. That could be why she's so aloof and formal. Well, I've also heard that she aided her father against the attacks at home too, so I guess the traps she mentioned are how she helps her father. That's an impressive feat considering she's only 14."

"Really? Commander?" The men reluctantly said, amazed at the information they had just learned from their commander.

"Still doesn't give her the right to act spoiled with us though." Hijikata huffed, and crossed his arms.

"Hijikata-san, just tell us the truth. You're jealous that Kondo-san is referring to her with so much respect aren't you." Okita bluntly says, a smirk tugging at his lips.

"Eh. Really? Toshi? Well, sorry about that. Ahaha."

"As if! That's not it, Kondo-san! Why would I even be envious of a brat!?"

* * *

><p>Hijikata can definitely say that this is one of the <em>most<em> troublesome job he had as a Shinsengumi. Well, listening to her advice, he tried to avoid the many traps set up all over the place. However, as he took a walk in the garden, he unfortunately found himself caught in a net trap.

"Shit. This is not good. Not good at all." Hijikata found it extremely hard to reach and unsheath his katana, especially in the position he is in. However, he was a prideful man, and if Sougo found him in the state he is right now, Hijikata was sure Sougo would never let him live it down.

"It's useless to try to cut the ropes, Vice Commander-kun. These ropes are created with the intention of being uncuttable, which we use in our case to catch intruders. Well, looks like it's done its job a little too well." A voice called out and Hijikata turned to see Akira smirking.

"Tch. So get me down, kid." He mumbled in his irritated voice, a tick mark appearing on his temple.

"Eh? Should I though? You did insult me not long ago. I don't see any reason to do as you say." She cockily tilts her head to the side, feigning innocence. That pissed him off way more than it should've.

"Oi kid. Don't you know something called 'respecting your elders'?" Hijikata was trying hard not to bark at the girl furiously. He was not one to hurt, whether physically or verbally, a woman.

"Of course I do. However, I choose whether one is worthy of my respect. Your Gorilla Commander is quickly climbing up my rankings. Unfortunately, _you_ are not_._" Akira venomously spat out, as if saying it made her mouth taste bitter.

"You damn brat..." Hijikata was losing his patience at an alarming rate, and in a few moments he would probably explode and start cussing profanities.

"What the-!" The net suddenly dropped, however, bringing the Shinsengumi officer down with it. Hijikata was sure the impact was going to leave a few bruises here and there. After all, he did land in such an ungraceful way.

"Well, thank you for finding some of my traps for me. I tend to forget some of their locations. Now, where should I go next?" She brought out a notepad from somewhere and made a check mark, before running off and leaving Hijikata alone.

"That goddamn brat... This job is going to be such a pain in the ass." He mumbled, stretching his back and rubbing his sore neck.

* * *

><p>"Alright. I got a picture of Hijikata-san caught in a net trap for future blackmailing. I guess I'm done then." Okita Sougo yawned and turned off his phone, deciding to rest under the shade of a tree. He was about to pull his sleep mask down when he heard a voice.<p>

"First Division's Captain-kun... No that's way too long. Captain-kun, what are you doing here?" Akira cocks her head to the side, this time genuinely, and stares at the boy.

"Sleeping, obviously. There's nothing else for me to do." Okita once again starts to pull his mask down.

"Is that so... Then would you accompany me somewhere?"

"Oh? Sure." Shinsengumi's First Division's Captain Okita Sougo shrugs and stands up.

"You're an interesting person." She says out of the blue, after the pair walks for a few minutes without a definite destination in mind.

"I can say the same with you." He blurts out monotonously, and the two walks in silence again.

"So you have a rivalry with Vice Commander-kun?"

"Something like that."

"Oh? Then what if I propose for an alliance?" She stops and turns to look at him with a face that screams out 'I AM SCHEMING SOMETHING'

"An alliance?" Okita turns to look at her, curious in the sudden yet interesting request of alliance.

"I'm sure you've realized that I plan on playing around with him. He's the perfect victim for my pranks." Akira grins viciously, and Okita smirks.

"Then, it's a deal?" She extends her hand with a smug grin.

"Deal." Okita shakes her hand, with his infamous smirk plastered on his face.

* * *

><p>A Summary of Important Events:<p>

Kurosawa Satoshi entrusts his daughter and house to the Shinsengumi for an indefinite amount of time.

Kondo Isao is belittled by Kurosawa Akira, though she leaves the room with a good impression of him and gives him total control.

The Shinsengumi learns of her history somewhat.

Hijikata Toshirou clashes with Akira, already leaving a horrible impression on her with just two encounters.

Okita Sougo and Kurosawa Akira forms an alliance to oppose Hijikata Toshirou.


End file.
